CMA Fest “The Music Event of the Summer” on ABC

While 2018’s CMA Fest may be a distant memory for the tens of thousands of lucky fans in attendance, “The Music Event of the Summer” will make its television premiere tomorrow, Wednesday, August 8 at 8/7c on the ABC Television Network. The three-hour musical extravaganza will feature performances from 29 of country music’s hottest names, including Luke Bryan, Florida Georgia Line, Sam Hunt, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, and more.

The special, which was filmed over four days in June, will be broadcast for the 15th straight year and hosted by Thomas Rhett and Kelsea Ballerini, who will also be performing. Speaking to The Tennessean, Ballerini admitted that for her, performing was a walk in the park. “Being on stage is the easy part,” she said. “Especially on a week like this when that whole stadium is filled with the biggest country music fans.”

2018’s CMA Fest was Nashville’s 47th, and each year, it seems to just get bigger and bigger. This year’s event drew country music fans from all fifty U.S. states and 36 foreign countries. Additionally, there were over 300 performers appearing on 11 official stages. Among those 300 performers were a select few who will make their “CMA Fest” television debut. They include Kane Brown, Luke Combs, Midland, Jon Pardi, Carly Pearce, and Morgan Wallen.  Other artists you can expect to see on this year’s broadcast include Jason Aldean, Dierks Bentley, Dan + Shay, Dustin Lynch, Old Dominion, Darius Rucker, Blake Shelton, and Chris Stapleton.

If you can’t wait for the actual broadcast, we’ve got a little sneak peak of the show with Carrie Underwood performing her single, “Cry Pretty”: